Is Goat Environmentally friendly or bad to the environment? How it affect climate change
In different countries, mostly in Africa and Asia, goats are the most essential source of meat and milk to feed the dense population with extra income and as such indispensable as they have been linked to human for at least 10,000 years .
Goats are regarded as a valuable source of income and nutrition for human.
Goats are environmentally friendly animal because through systematic grazing they prevent the spread of noxious weeds, and also help to promote the growth of local vegetative species through moderate grazing.
Goats possess the ability to adapt to very difficult environments, even in their feeding habits and such does not compete with human when it comes to feeding. With cheap feeds you can keep the average goat healthy and their productivity level intact.
Goat production requires a moderately sustainable option to other red meats. Goats are considered to be browsers, instead of grazers like cows, they do not rip out root systems and exhaust the soil of nutrient-rich grasses during feeding.
By feeding on scrub and weeds, goats eliminate competition for soil nutrients which assists to replenish pasture quality. Moreover, goats require limited space than cattle, therefore you can breed more of goats on a portion of land than cattle.
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Is goat bad for the environment?
According to a report released by the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture, Livestock are responsible for about 14.5 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions
When it comes to environmental impact, meat and dairy tend to be the main contributors to the global carbon circulation. Considering food, the three animals producing the most carbon emissions are lamb, beef, and cheese, Says FAO.
Take for instance goats are known to produce carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide and methane and this come about through belching, although there are report that scientists are trying to bread special kind of goats that burp less by eating less food.
This carbon is contained in feed grain production, which uses substantial doses of pesticides and nitrogen fertilizer.
Considering that the livestock sector accounts for 14.5% of human-induced greenhouse-gas emissions in the environment, surpassing that from transportation.
Besides, animal manure and discards are constantly not dealt with properly. Most farmers occasionally disposing of their dunks in rivers, polluting and endangering the environmental biodiversity.
Advantages of Goat Farming
Goats are considered to be easily cared for. They require less space than other livestock animals and are less expensive to feed. Goats can survive in less-than-ideal environments. Here are remarkable advantages of goat farming;
- The Goat is considered to be a multi-purpose animal that produces meat, milk, hide, fiber, & manure.
- Goat farming can be a promising occupation or marketable business for a farmer and this can suit well in mixed farming.
- Goats do not require particular housing (shed) and management. They barely require separate housing and can breed in homes with other livestock depending on the habitat & region.
- Goats are considered to be quite friendly, manageable, and economical. Also highly disease resistance when compared to other livestock.
- Goats adapt to different agro-climatic conditions varying from arid dry to hot humid. Goats can be bred in plains, rocky tracts, sandy zones, and mountain regions.
- Goats are considered to have a high rate of breeding, able of giving birth to many kids leading to multiplication in a short period.
- Goats can be combined into agriculture where their manure can be completely utilized and are very good at grazing weeds on the farm.
- The goat has the best meat when compared to beef and pork meat. Goat meat contains less fat and fewer cholesterol levels. Goat milk is also more nutritious (easily digestible) when compared to other livestock.
- Goat produces hide which is used for the manufacturing of leather products and the hairs are used for the manufacturing of rugs and ropes.
drawbacks of Goats Farming
If you have been asking what are the disadvantages of Goats farming? Here are some notable drawbacks or disadvantages of the goat farming business.
- Inadequate Capital: In some regions, marginal farmers are not able to start a goat farming business due to inadequate capital. This has prevented farmers from this business on a large scale.
- Inadequate Vet Services : Inadequate veterinary services hinder farmers from getting proper treatment or medicine for their animal when it becomes sick or ill.
- Inadequate Animal Transport: Animals are transported in specially designed vehicles which are very costly in some areas. This hinders buying quality animals from far regions and prevent farmers from selling in another market.
- Marketing Difficulties: Goat products have an increasing demand in the local and international market. However, some farmers face difficulties while selling their products even though having good produce.
Other Problems
Along with the disadvantages cited above, other problems include;
- Predator: There are some predators like coyotes, dogs, and some other vicious animals that are the main predators that pray on goats.
- Risk Of theft: As smaller sized animals, the goats are in danger to theft. Due to their size, goats can easily be snatch from the herd.
- Disease Attack:Goats are vulnerable to some parasites and common goat diseases. And diagnosing viral goat diseases is very hard. Viral diseases of goats are known to spread rapidly and resulting in the death of many animals in a single attack.
- Irregular Vaccination: Some farmers lack the knowledge about vaccinating their goats periodically. And irregular vaccination leads to the vulnerability of goats to different diseases.
- Improper caring: Improper care during the pregnancy period of goats may cause the death of the kids or the doe.
- Sanitation Management Problem: Some farmers are not knowledgeable about the proper sanitary management. Unsuitable sanitation in goat farming leads to an outbreak of diseases.
- Mixing Of Breeds: Rearing many animals together leads to mixed or crossbreeding which is not always good. Mixed or crossbreeding of different goat species can result in losses in the farming system.
- Risk Of Crop Loss: Goats that are allowed to roam freely may attack a garden and languishing the crops leading to crop loss
These are the common drawbacks of the goat farming business. Before commencing any farming business, we suggest knowing about the benefits and drawbacks of that business and how to tackle those drawback.
